#I just like making emmet suffer honestly

[egginfroggin]

What inspired you to make wtst and pandemonic Paradise ?

If you were to make another "Emmet-centric" AU, what would it be about ?

Honestly, I just wanted to make Emmet suffer, I think.

To be serious, though, I was introduced to Submas through Ingo's involvement in PLA, so a lot of my ideas involved PLA, either in worldbuilding (taking place in Hisui) or plot (taking bits of story from the game).

The idea for WtST came from me thinking about having one of the twins take the place of Akari/Rei in PLA, I think. Then I thought it would be fun to leave it vague as to which twin had been eeby-deebied, which resulted in the narration consistently avoiding Emmet's name and instead calling him "Faller" until the last two chapter. The scene that started it, I would say, was the one in chapter 3, where Emmet runs from Jubilife upon being banished. I wanted to write that, so I needed a story, and then the story needed an end.

So... basically, Welcome to Sinnoh's Temple is just the fruit of my desire to write angst while also testing the idea of Emmet being the PLA protagonist.

Pandemonic Paradise came about because I looked at the conflict with Volo in WtST and wanted to write a version of things where Emmet lost and Ingo wound up getting dragged into the aftermath. Pandemonic Paradise is very self-indulgent, and is something of an excuse for me to delve into writing some of the heavy emotions surrounding grief and loss. Also, I wanted to write Ingo getting well and truly angry. I enjoy pushing characters' emotions around -- especially characters who are normally mellow and non-confrontational.

Yeah. the Welcome to Sinnoh's Temple series really did just into being because I like angst, it seems.

What I would have another possible Emmet-centric AU be about is a very good question. Most of my ideas involve both of the twins, like Iced Tracks. I do very much enjoy digging into a character's psyche and emotions -- psychology fascinates me -- so I'd like to do something involving those, probably. I do have a vague idea for a fic wherein Emmet, deep in grief, is taken advantage of and winds up being coerced/manipulated/what-have-you into committing some very questionable actions involving space-time, mainly from his point of view.

However, that idea heavily involves themes such as emotional manipulation (in combination with emotional vulnerability), toxic and abusive relationships, emotional/mental abuse and coercion, and gaslighting, so I'd like to do some research on the topics involved before I write that.

(But boy does the idea rot my brain for a few nights about every month)

Perhaps you've noticed a common denominator with all my inspiration (it's angst, and it is very potent).

Thank you very much for the ask, Anon! Sorry that it took me so long to answer. I hope that this answered your question, and I hope you have a good day! <3

[leggerefiore]

cw: angst, ingo and Emmet reunion

It seemed Emmet had hit his lowest point when Ingo had disappeared.

His sobs had echoed off the walls of the Gear Station while Depot Agents tried to desperately to comfort him to no avail. Elesa had even been called yet was unable to do anything to get through to him. Your best attempts had only managed to make him cling to you and beg for you not to vanish too. He had been unstable for weeks afterward, having gone into a retreat of isolation and desperate searching. Nothing brought him comfort. Everything reminded him of his brother.

Then, he decided to force himself to return to work. He was needed, after all. Emmet could not just throw away everything that he and Ingo had worked so hard for. His pain had not left, nor did it appear it would ever, but he was going to take responsibility for keeping everything for Ingo to return to. You supported him to the best of your abilities, becoming his assistant of sorts and keeping him company throughout the long days that never seemed to end.

Of course, you had not expected the intense hurt he would feel upon seeing his brother again.

Ingo was returned. In one piece, he was, but one look could tell you something was off. His clothing was tattered or previously unknown. His posture was something that no one would dare see from the older Subway Boss. Not to mention, his immediate response to speak a language that was not common in Unova. The worst, however, was how he stared at Emmet. Confusion. Fear. Sending out a pokemon against him while claiming that he would not fall for a Zoroark's illusion.

Emmet was crushed.

He fell to his knees, sobbing and begging his brother to remember.

You had to stop the attempted pokemon assault. An explanation that he was actually his twin seemed harder to believe for him. A glance at the sobbing man at least told him that he was not a threat. Emmet managed to regain his footing and stumble over to the new Ingo. Arms came around the older twin as the younger just wept. Ingo stood stunned, staring out into space for a moment. Something did seem to click, however, as he brought his arms around the shaking man. The hug calmed Emmet a bit, at least.

A hospital trip followed, naturally. New scars and injuries littered Ingo's body, alongside his obviously concerning mental state. You both fretted over the man the same, but Emmet was the most torn by the news that Ingo was suffering from an extreme amnesia. There was little the medical staff could do, but they felt his memories may have a better chance at returning in a familiar location rather than wherever he had been.

Ingo was not overly chatty, something rare and concerning, but he was interested in Emmet. You left the two alone for a moment, knowing full well it was better to give them some privacy.

You waited and waited in the hall. Hours passed, but Emmet never seemed to pull away from Ingo's side. You peered in a few times, but could not catch what their conversation was about. Eventually, when visiting hours were just about to end, he emerged. Rushing to his side, you stared at him. A sniffle came Emmet. Then, arms pulled you into a warm hug. A bright smile was on his face.

“Ingo is verrry mean,” he sighed, “All he could remember about me was something I said on the battle lines.”

You were honestly stunned. Obviously, you had heard what the doctors had said, but you were not expecting him to truly have forgotten Emmet. Not with how close they were.

“… Was it you ordering everyone to smile?” you questioned, a bit curious about what he said that was apparently so memorable.

“Nope! It was me saying that I like winning more than anything else,” he laughed a bit.

“Wow, I'd be a bit offended if all I could remember about my twin is them saying that,” you teased him, “I'd think they didn't like me.”

“Hmm…” he considered your words seriously. Then, he wordlessly turned towards Ingo's room and walked in. You tried to stop him, but he marched towards the resting man. Their direct eye contact was a bit awkward, but Emmet suddenly pulled Ingo's fringe lightly. “I like victory, yes. Verrry much,” he nodded, “But, I love you, too, Ingo!” You held back laughter. He turned towards you. “You, too, darling!”

Well, it seemed he was almost back to his old self. Now to work on Ingo, you supposed.

[kelpiemomma]

Ingo held Khan's scaled wrist gently as he examined the claws his friend now sported. Five fingers had been turned into four deadly talons, new to Ingo but already put to gruesome work by the hybrid.

"I'm sorry about your hands..." he said softly. Khan shrugged as he examined his other claws.

"Eh, don't sweat it. It's hardly the worst thing they've done to me." He responded mildly. As though his body being changed against his will to a weapon was the norm. Ingo glanced at his eyes, his fangs, the remnants of his horns- and remembered this wasn't the first time his friend had been altered against his will. His grip on Khan's hand tightened.

"Still," he insisted, "if we'd found you guys sooner..."

If they'd found Khan and Nana sooner, Khan would still have his hands and Nana would still have both eyes. If they'd been just a little faster to realize the hybrids were missing, to remember where they had come from, if they had pushed their pokemon a little harder to fly and fight-

"I'm glad you found us at all, honestly." Khan said it off the cuff, without thinking, but must have felt how Ingo's grip tightened again. He turned his head to look at his friend and Ingo felt mild dread at the look in his eyes. As Khan leaned forward he cringed back just slightly.

"Hey, look on the bright side!" Khan accentuated his words with a point from his claws. He must have seen Ingo's confused upset because he smiled wider.

"The bright side?" Ingo repeated. There was a bright side to this?

Khan shut his eyes as if he was a teacher explaining something incredibly simple.

"Oh, my sweet summer train man, of course there is!"

He stuck out his claws like Elesa and Skylar did when they were showing off freshly done nails. The scales gleamed in the light, dimly iridescent.

"I match your color scheme now!"

Ingo's gaze remained on the claws for a moment. Was this really a good thing? Khan had lost another important part of himself because he and Emmet had been too slow. Was the simple black nature of his scales that important? Could it make up for everything else?

He looked up with tired eyes, meeting Khan's gaze again, and realized that Khan was not as unaffected as he thought. He was giving Ingo the softest smile he'd ever witnessed on the other man's scarred face, his eyes half shut and gentle. Khan had been there when it happened, had suffered the consequences, just as he had the last time he'd been abducted. He would figure out how to deal with his new appendages just as he always had before. It was not quite old hat, but it was also nothing new, and something would have been changed no matter how quickly he and Emmet had arrived.

For the first time in the years he'd known Khan, the hybrid was being sympathetic and offering Ingo a comfort over something he had no control of. Yes, he now had claws and scales, but they were the color that Ingo most frequently found himself in. The color of one of his closest family members. Ingo wondered if Khan had used that as a way to comfort himself after it happened, but didn't dare ask. Instead he tried smiling. Surely it was weak, but the worried look in Khan's eyes lessened.

"Yes, you're quite right." Ingo grasped Khan's claws as if they were still his hands, holding them tightly. He would get used to them, just as Khan had. It would be alright. "Another color would have been quite unfortunate."

[nemesis-is-my-middle-name]

And on the protag's side, now that they're aware that their actions do in fact have consequences, it's not like they can just stop dying, particularly during the very hard noble fights. They can stop being so perfectionist about everything, even if maybe they fall back into bad habits when they stop paying attention, but the noble battles took me a lot of tries every time, even when I took the shortcut of starting in the middle of them again. So with every reset, that's more added guilt. If they've become, or already were prior to Hisui, a perfectionist, they already have that mindset of "I could be better, I should be better," but now it's got the added weight of guilt and anxiety and shame of "it's my fault for not being better at this already, I'm personally responsible for someone's suffering I can't afford to fail". That might make the noble battles even harder too, because now they're desperate to get things done quickly without dying, and the added stress makes them hasty and prone to bad judgement calls.

A lot of the time Ingo and the protag have a good relationship, but in this situation how could they possibly look at Ingo without drowning in their self-disgust? How could they possibly forgive themself - for being so blasé about their own life, for hurting him, for not being better - even if he himself has forgiven them? That's a lot for a kid to take, especially in an already stressful, high-stakes environment. They treated this like a video game, maybe to help cope with the trauma of it all, but what helped them get through things so far has completely wrecked another person's mental health, and there's nothing either of them can do about it. The protag quite abruptly realizes that the genre of the "game" they were playing was never adventure, it was survival horror, and they never noticed until it was too late.

And in the other scenario... god, why even try? After a few times, why even bother doing literally anything? Your whole life could be functionally reset, even if you're careful and cautious. And on Emmet's end, imagine if time isn't distorted to a few weeks. He could go years before, poof, he's back to when Ingo went missing. Years of his life, gone, to the worst moment and he never even gets the chance to save Ingo. That'd fuck him up so much, especially if he ever came to the horrible conclusion that things being reset means that, somewhere, somehow, Ingo probably died. And with every failed attempt to save Ingo at the start of the loop, the guilt and horror and desperation to find him before he dies again gets worse.

Everyone is having such a good time.

YES!! YES!!!

and like, the noble fights SHOULD be hard to win. they SHOULD take a long time to get right, because in-universe, you're fighting a monster with the power of a god, driven out of its mind by divine corruption and with its only thought being to tear and rend and destroy. and you are. a human. having a food fight with it. honestly, it's more unbelievable that non-timelooping protags pull it all off on the first try unscathed.

which is already so fucked for timeloop protag, b/c whatever their relationship to the looping was in the very start of the game (or if they were even aware of it), once they got to kleavor, they had to die. over. and over. and over. learn how to dodge this way for its first attack, only to get hit by the second. learn how to turn you both so that none of the onlookers are in the line of fire. the final loop they take looks like magic, them dancing through these deadly axes and never being touched, being perfect—of course galaxy and the clans send them after the next one, and the next, and the next. it seems miraculous, their ability. with a power like that, how could you not take advantage of it? nobody knows how much it costs them in twitchy reflexes and invisible scars. until somebody does.

bc like. this is going way the way back to that canon thing where galaxy is still considering the protag's worth after they've joined, and one of the conditions is if they get hurt and suddenly cost more resources than they bring in. they get kicked out. so protag can't just not die. they can't get hurt, period. or at least not bad enough to the point where they can't still work as a surveyor, which is like, in a fight with a noble, getting hurt with only a light scratch is much rarer than getting a limb snapped. so protag really does need to be perfect.

and then ooooof to them feeling pressured to get it right as fast as possible after finding out about ingo. at least once they know him, they can give him a warning or an explanation when they're about to be facing something that's going to be really hard...? y'know i typed that out intending to say something else but like. reading it back i feel like the protag thinking that's ok. like how the fuck would ingo consider that an acceptable statement. "i'm going to go throw myself at electrode a hundred times until i get a perfect run where i don't get hurt" the hell you are! isn't this what we were just talking about! just don't do the thing that gets you killed a hundred times! but then how do you suddenly convince everyone involved that you suddenly need to change your entire strategy for dealing with frenzies, without telling everyone about the entire time-resetting clusterfuck. there's kind of no good way, huh. and that's if they don't hear about time resetting and just agree that "ok, i guess you respawn if you die so just die over and over. it's been working out great so far. obviously this is what god intended." which you have no guarantee of. so protag's stuck between this really uncomfortable scenario of either trying to figure out some way to proceed without resetting, only to potentially defeat the entire exercise if they forget or slip back into perfectionist habits. or they can go against ingo's wishes and try to tank the frenzy anyway. both of which feel awful to them!

but like. even if they could somehow guarantee that they'd never die again, most of the damage has already been done. ingo just sort of passively assumes now that nothing he remembers is accurate, or at least, if anything is, it's such a small fraction of it as to be entirely unreliable anyway. even knowing that the loops are real and he isn't just dreaming them up, it's so hard to keep track of which things happened in aborted loops vs which things actually happened. he doesn't even keep track of days anymore. looking at a calendar or anything like that is almost nauseating, realizing how off his perceived passage of time is from what's "really" happening. just going through life in a fog. probably none of this is real, anyway. no matter how real it feels now, it might all evaporate in the next instant. which is made all the worse by the fact that i think ingo legitimately does have a very good memory, when all this shit isn't actively fucking with it as much as possible. he remembers it all so clearly—but nobody else does. and then things that did happen, according to everyone else, he doesn't remember at all. so this one thing that he should be good at has now been taken from him too.

and if protag does inevitably fuck up, imagine their own hurt when they next see ingo. you reset? trying to sound level and normal but with the undercurrent of please tell me you reset. please, tell me any of that was real. reminded all over again what they did to him, and will never get a chance to erase.

[sbmscurtainconvictionau]

Random Em doodles [Long Thread]

HEAD START! A silly meme i made teehees cutely i love lore ONCE AGAIN I AM MAKING LONG THREADS I LOVE MAKING LONG THREADS AND EXPLAINING WHAT MY TINY BRAIN HAS TO OFFER ^-^

Anywho off we start with this image and God 💀 it is so terrible out of context because it IS ESSENTIALLY WHAT HAPPANED

Okay so basically the whole plot of this AU is basically Em trying to create a reality where Emmet and Ingo do end up getting their reunion in exchange for his mortal body to be severly twisted and his already terrible mental illness and sociopathic behaviour isn't helping him make any decision a good decision so he ends up by accident in order to control the lives of Emmet and Ingo he has to essentially manipulate their surroundings and suggest them so many things to become who they are today. Nothing can fix this man, my guy.

Youre gonna watch him suffer.

Anywho. More bacon man here, hes smiling for once ^-^

Picture of him sleeping with a pillow ^-^

Height difference and usual arguments at their shared abandoned house

He has severe abandonment issues 💀 He'd be pretty hurt if Lolo ever betrayed him but I dont think so, at least. Would Lolo do it?

Em merged his account with Lolo's account because he's technically not supposed to be alive. He has his grave back in Unova but he never visited it before. It was right next to Indigo's grave too, except Em brought back Indigo's corpse all the way from Hisui.

Em doesn't understand a lot of emotions and Lolo is usually trying to get him to understand what he's feeling. Sadly he also uses it to his advantage too at times.

If there was an otome train gacha game I'd want it too

Em: I was laying on the ground right behind our house. It was raining and really damp and all the worms and maggots started eating me. It was ticklish at first but it was relieving. And then, the ground kept piling up on me until I couldn't see the sky anymore

Em: I couldn't feel my muscle, and the bones I had were starting to break down to scattered pieces. It was really nice, I felt hazy mostly but it was honestly just relaxing. And then next thing you know I was able to fly and there was nothing on me. I had no weight

Em: It was like I became some kind of angel ghost thing, it was really freeing. I've been repeating this dream for some time now so I'd figured I'd share it with you

Lolo: So all this time you were sleeping for 4 days straight was just you dying in your sleep?

Em: Wish it was

Lolo: Wow, okay. I'm trying to sleep here but after hearing that I'm not sure I'd like that kind of dream. Small spaces freak me out

Em: it's so freeing though, think about it. If you're no longer human, you don't have to suffer any more

Lolo: Ugh, wake me up in the morning

Finally! Em in some normal clothing

That's all for now see you next time ^-^

[shadow-trick]

【Rexmet】The Forgotten Sunset（pt.1-3）

English ver. is translate by deepL！love it！

Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)

*1 Gambling

　　"Why can't you just get it?!" Rex's almost hysterical voice fell with his fist. Tangled up with Emmet, he clearly had the upper hand, but his voice contained a hint of an almost imperceptible tremor, but that tremor was completely overshadowed by the moves he was making like a blizzard. "You mean nothing to them! They don't care about you at all! You won't be able to wait for your so-called best friends to save you even if you stay here for a hundred years!"

　　Honestly, it was more than he had expected, Rex had wanted to simply take away his past self so that Emmet wouldn't be harmed by the people he recognized as his "friends". But there's no denying that when Emmet asked him to save his "friends" from becoming the brothers he never had in the past, Rex was overwhelmed by Emmet's offer - and everything that followed was both intentional and the result of going along for the ride. After all, Armamageddon was already doomed, and he was just helping fate. Using fate to keep Emmet away from those heartless plastic friends was a perfect plan any way you look at it.

　　However, he didn't realize that Emmet, who had never experienced the pain she had suffered, didn't believe him at all, but still chose to believe in those "friends" and was determined to save them.

　　"Because I knew she would come! As soon as they get out of there!" Emmet shouted hoarsely. "Lucy will come - she'll come for me!"

　　That was it. No matter what Rex said about the pathetic ending he'd gotten, no matter how much Rex emphasized that no one would come to this drying galaxy to save him if he waited any longer, Emmet still believed it, stubborn and obstinate to the point of Rex's despair. But somewhere in his heart, Rex knew that this was proof that they were the same person. Rex could remember a time when he'd believed the same thing as Emmet, and how determined he'd been to- - It seemed so foolish now. -It seemed foolish and ridiculous now. But that kind of conviction really wasn't something he could turn around with a few words.

　　Only by seeing it with his own eyes would Emmet realize that what he was saying was the truth. Only by shattering his naïve and childish beliefs would he be able to rebuild a hardened mind that wouldn't be hurt by it all again.

　　"Fine." gritted Rex. "Emmet, do you dare make a bet with me?"

　　"You need to recognize the truth. You can't leave because I will never let you go. To put it simply, you've been kidnapped, brother. But I'll give you a chance - since you're convinced 'your friend Lucy' is going to be here," Rex said in his most conspiratorial tone as he spoke of what he once considered to be his best friend. "So, we'll wait here now until you're satisfied. If she comes, you win, and I'll let you go without ever stopping you. If she doesn't come ……"

　　"Fine!" Emmet replied before Rex could finish. An almost lopsided battle ended there, Emmet was now in a sorry state but glared at Rex unconvincingly, "Just you wait and see - Lucy she'll come, she'll bring all her friends to save me! I believe in them!"

　　He was answered with a sneer from Rex. "You'll see."

*:: 2 Cold War time

　　Of course Lucy and the others won't come. At the moment, they've already encountered "Armamageddon" and have been sealed in a storage box.

　　Lucy and the others will not be able to escape until they receive Mother's permission for their release. Of course, for Emmet, it may be a bit difficult to understand all this - after all, even when he first "saved the world" and went to the real world, he did not understand what the "real world" is. After all, even when he first "saved the world" and went to the real world, he didn't understand what the "real world" was, and he didn't even understand how he got the ability to be a Master Builder.

　　He did his best to get the boy to notice him and drop him back into the LEGO world, but he still doesn't understand what kind of gift "coming to the real world" is, and he's already seen the truth of the world. Only he, who has become a Rex, knows how long ago he had the chance to break out of the box. Only Rex, who had spent countless days and nights under the Drying Galaxy and understood the laws of the real world, could grasp this opportunity and use it to create the future he wanted.

　　Emmet, who doesn't understand all this, is sitting at the border of the Drying Galaxy, looking forward to the arrival of his friends.

　　But no matter how long he waits, there will only be one ending. After learning about the real world, Rex realizes what the key to all this really is. Since the beginning of all his tragedies came from the conflict between those two siblings, it didn't make sense to just let them make up so easily, right?

　　So, [Rex destroyed Watevra Wa'Nabi himself while working with Emmet to stop the wedding] - and it was complete, unrecoverable destruction.

　　His Master Destruction Fist was enough to turn her into the same parts she was before he created her in the first place, mixed in with the debris of the temple ruins so that she could never be put back together and restored. His creation became his disaster, and ultimately destroyed at his hands, just as the one who freed the devil with his own hands sealed it back into the bottle again.

　　Of course, Rex understands that Armageddon will not last until the end of the world, that Lucy, and the others, will be released, and that a mother cannot stop her children from playing with their toys forever. But if only for a little while, Rex is confident that he can win his bet with Emmet before then, and take him far away with him. From then on, imagination became reality, the sky and the sea were wide enough for them to travel, they could travel through the vast universe, they could travel through time and space, and they could go wherever they wanted to go.

　　Rex hadn't realized yet that he had underestimated Emmet's faith and patience.

　　After the bet was made, they set up camp at the edge of the Drying Galaxy where the bottom planets meet cosmic space, and Emmet and Rex battled it out, with Emmet looking in the direction they came from, and Rex keeping an eye on Emmet to keep him from escaping-which Emmet had already tried to do, in fact. Only Rex didn't let him succeed, while packing up his tent and supplies for the night.

　　He was ready to stay here for days on end. He was confident that within a few days, he would be able to make Emmet realize the truth and give up his obsession with his so-called friend and leave from here with him.Rex had even made a plan on which world they should jump to and what kind of adventure they should embark on once they left from this world. He already had a few alternate destinations in mind, just waiting for Emmet's nod so they could set sail.

　　"Really don't want to stay in this place though." Every second here made Rex feel uncomfortable. Unlike Emmet, who had literally been trapped here for countless hours, he had been crushed here, and even though he had been reborn as "Rex", this place still caused him immense hatred and pain. But every time he saw Emmet's back, sitting on the edge of the drying galaxy between the bottom of the galaxy and the universe, Rex gritted his teeth and endured. He remembered why he was here, what he wanted to achieve, and with his ultimate goal just this much time away from him, there was no way he was going to give up, no matter what. It was equally impossible for him to leave Emmet alone beyond the Drying Galaxy, because he remembered how painful it was to be alone in this place, so it was impossible for him to leave Emmet alone here.

　　Time passed, and Rex set up his tent, packed up his other things, and paced back and forth under the Drying Galaxy a few more times, but couldn't find anything else to do or divide his attention elsewhere. That pervasive feeling of emptiness and torment seeped into him from memory the longer he stayed here, and Rex couldn't stand it any longer, so he just went to the edge as well, put some distance between him and Emmet, sat down and started to wait. "They can't be out that fast." After some time, Rex finally couldn't resist taking the initiative to break the cold war stalemate. "You're just wasting time waiting here."

　　"Knowing that they will come, so my waiting is also full of hope." Emmet was still laughing at the moment. "Rex, they'll come for me, they must be thinking the same thing I am, just like I'm trying to save them now. You're finding it hard to wait too, so please, can you let me go so I can go save them?"

　　"Don't you even think about it, no way." Rex refused coldly. "Don't you dare cry when you can't wait for them."

　　"That won't happen." Emmet was equally adamant, as if he'd already seen Lucy flooding into this place with everyone from the borders of the Drying Galaxy, taking his hand and laughing as she led him away.

　　"Whatever." Talking about the subject only made him angrier and angrier, and Rex closed his eyes, dismissing the idea of continuing to talk Emmet down today. However, he didn't expect to see a marvelous sight beyond his imagination when he opened his eyes again.

　　The first thing that came into his eyes was a reddish, almost violet light, bright with a slight hint of obscurity and softness that belonged to twilight. The endless sky and the evening sun from far and near, are dyed by that light into different shades of cee color, forming a gradient color sky from bright red to pinkish purple, and then to blue purple.

　　"Is this …… sunset?" Rex rubbed his eyes and looked ahead again to confirm what he was seeing. As it turned out, the landscape in front of them was no longer everything they had seen from the ground-level perspective of the real world, but had become a magnificent, magnificent sunset.

　　Their world was made up of a combination of "reality" and "imagination", as long as there was a certain background of reality, coupled with a strong enough heart and imagination, it would be enough to create such a landscape. Emmet did not seem to notice that something was wrong, but was just facing the bloodstained sun, waiting quietly as if she wanted to see through it.

　　It was the time when the sun was setting, and some of the sunset glow fell into this room from the window, and Emmet let it grow into this sunset landscape in his imagination. The rays of the setting sun fell into this gap from the other side of the sky, and the ruddy glow, like a flame, carried a faint warmth as it fell, but somehow carried a faint sense of loneliness.

　　"Huh?" came a sudden questioning snort from Emmet. Right beside him, Rex suddenly came over and sat down without a word. "What are you doing?"

　　"Don't you think the view is extraordinarily good from this angle?" Rex said casually.Emmet had grown up a bit after this period of time, and could see that Rex's words were merely pulled to perfume him, but he was still in a state of semi-cold war, and did not continue to make conversation after all, but just looked away in the direction of what was once Castle Doom, and was now a wasteland. I don't know if it was Rex's illusion, but as twilight drenched the sky, the light of anticipation in Emmet's eyes seemed to fade a little. Is the light fading because night is coming, Rex thought uncertainly.

　　As night fell, Rex built a campfire and roasted some sausages, corn, and marshmallows, half coercing and half cajoling Emmet, who had tried to refuse even the food he had brought.

　　"I don't want to see you starve to death first before the outcome of the bet is known." With that said, Rex forcefully passed the sizzling sausage towards Emmet's mouth, who in the end ate the food Rex gave him. Seeing this scene Rex's mouth corners of that classic villain general impish smile are a little softer.

　　At night, under the Drying Galaxy even the stars in the sky could not be seen, the night seemed particularly eerie.Rex pointed to the tent: "Are you really not going to go to bed?"

　　"No, I'm going to wait here." The firelight reflected Emmet's back, while most of his body was dried in the shadows, as if he had been surrounded by dust, burying even himself in it.

　　"Aw……!" Emmet suddenly felt something soft hit him. He rubbed his head and picked up what had just hit him to see that it was a blanket.

　　"The night temperatures will freeze you to ice." Rex had another blanket wrapped around him and sat directly next to him. "What, you think I'm going to give you a chance to escape?"

　　Looking at Rex, who seemed to have completely taken over the role of 'kidnapper', Emmet felt a hint of amusement despite his resentment, and couldn't help but raise the corners of his lips. He wrapped the blanket around him, and within moments the warmth returned to his already chilled body, causing him to let out a long breath.

　　"Thank you, Rex," Emmet spoke suddenly. "Uh……," Rex rolled his eyes a little incredulously in Emmet's direction and flickered off again in the opposite direction with desire, and then he suddenly glared back hard as if in reaction, clenching his teeth with a note of hatred: "Don't thank me, you're my prisoner now, I'm just doing what needs to be done! Like you, you're bound to have Stockholm Syndrome!"

　　Emmet ducked his body in the opposite direction at the sudden aggression of Rex, who, seeing that the intimidation was working, sat upright again under the blanket with his arms folded and looked away. After a few moments, Rex suddenly hears a low-pitched question, "Why are you doing this?"

　　Rex was startled. He turned his head, and from the light of the fire reflected behind himself, he saw Emmet looking at him.Emmet looked uncomprehending, and a little sad, "Actually, I still don't understand why you're doing this to me, and everyone else?"

　　"Since we met, Rex, you've always been good to me, and I've really had fun when we've had adventures together - I know I've never been mature enough, or tough enough, and I've always let my friends down. But you've never made me feel lost, never made me feel like I can't do anything right."

　　"But why did you have to trigger Armageddon? You know it would obviously make me, and everyone else, very sad. But then you take care of me when I'm feeling like you're a bad person - even though that's not what you're saying, what you're doing is being as nice to me as you were in the beginning."

　　"I …… don't understand. I'm confused, Rex," Emmet's gaze was clear and helpless, like a meek lamb lost in the wilderness. "All I know is that you are me, too. But if you are me, why are you doing this to me?"

　　"Why be nice to me and then push me away? Why hurt my important friends? Why do you want to comfort me and take me away after destroying the world and doing things that hurt my friends and broke me too?"

　　"I ……" Rex opened his mouth, suddenly speechless. How was he supposed to go about explaining this? Was it to say that he'd actually been trying to be nice to Emmet, trying to save his past self, so he'd done things that included hurting Emmet's friends and ejecting Emmet into this shithole of a hellhole and forcibly detaining him here? Or did it start with the abandonment, betrayal, and forgetfulness that he had actually told Emmet about, so he took the liberty of making choices for Emmet's sake? That he saw through the reality of the world, that all of them are just toys of the so-called "gods", that destruction and reconstruction are only at their whim, and that the world they live in is just a "matrix" that exists in the gap between the real world and the imaginary world, and that he wanted Emmet to be a part of it? "So he wants Emmet to be truly free?

Time travel is complicated beyond belief, and the world they live in is doubly so, and Rex has no compunction about destroying Watevra Wa'Nabi, triggering Armamageddon, and reducing everyone to the level of a storage box precisely because he knows it's all just a bunch of plastic toys. Those people have no real hearts. Those people had no real hearts, but in the hands of another, they would be brainwashed into doing things that were so out of character that in the hands of that little girl monster, superheroes and supervillains could even call themselves brothers and sisters! Because he knew this, he didn't hate those who had been his friends much, but rather became to not care at all. Perhaps one other person he cares about more or less is Lucy, but his feelings for her are completely different than they used to be, and are only left with a grudge because of her withholding, betrayal, and abandonment as a result. If he had to say that making that world what it is now is "revenge", he would agree, after all, in that world he got nothing but deception, ridicule and disregard. Except for Emmet, there is no one he cares about in this world, and Rex only came to this time and space for Emmet, who is his only obsession, his hope and future, and the meaning of his life.

　　But all this he has no way to explain to Emmet, explained Emmet most likely will not understand, just as he passionate speech his rebirth road, the result of Emmet only understand the first sentence.

　　So he had no answer for all this. At Emmet's gaze, Rex could only furrow his brows and say viciously, "Because I did it because I wanted to, is there a problem?"

　　Emmet withdrew his gaze in defeat.Rex turned away with a betrayed look, but the question Emmet had asked lingered in his mind for a long time.

　　And was he really doing the right thing?Before Rex's eyes, once again, Emmet's sad look appeared. This is like a pot of cold water, poured on Rex's heart. At this moment, his heart felt as if he couldn't step on the ground and couldn't make any strength, but he didn't understand - he and Emmet were obviously the same person, obviously, he realized his own wish was to realize Emmet's wish. Originally Rex was so unwavering in his belief, he believed that when Emmet saw himself abandoned and forgotten by Lucy as well as the others Emmet would understand and support him …… But suddenly he didn't seem so sure anymore. Though Rex himself didn't understand it, a fear and panic spread gradually upward from his stomach like a blanket couldn't keep out the chill of this night, as if it were trying to freeze his heart a little.

　　"Hoo ……" Just then, Rex suddenly heard a small snoring sound. It turned out that Emmet had fallen asleep at some point during the wait. He fell asleep, body a crooked, will fall to the side.Rex hurriedly reached out a pull, finally did not let Emmet directly head to the ground. As a result, Emmet's body swayed in his sleep, and he leaned directly onto Rex's shoulder, not only that, but the blanket he was draped on also slowly slid down and fell to the side.

　　"Ugh." Rex sighed. Looking at Emmet, who was asleep at the moment, he really didn't want to toss and turn too much. He could carry Emmet into the tent to rest, but they were still in the middle of a semi-cold war, if he woke him up, it would be too embarrassing.Rex wanted to pull the blanket up for Emmet and let him fall asleep like this, but unfortunately Emmet's blanket had already slipped out of Rex's reach, and if he tried to hold onto it, he would probably wake Emmet up. In the end, he was worried that Emmet would get sick from the cold if he fell asleep like this, so in the end, Rex could only pull his own blanket to wrap around both of their bodies, and kept the position of Emmet leaning against him as he continued to keep watch.

　　After Emmet fell asleep, there was no other sound around them. All was silent, the only sound left in the long dark night was the occasional crackle of a campfire burning.For a moment Rex felt as if he had been transported back to the time when the ship had crashed and he had been thrown here. Though that event had happened a long time ago for him, it was easy to get swept back into that vortex of gray memories whenever he dreamed, or was left alone. This time though, even after staying in this nightmarish place, Rex didn't have that sad, almost breathless feeling. The cold winds that once traveled through the bottom of the Drying Galaxy seemed to have all but disappeared …… or rather at this moment he could no longer feel them, and at this moment Rex could only feel the warmth coming from the person leaning against him beside him.Rex turned his head slightly sideways and realized that at this moment Emmet's sleeping face was very serene, like a bird's nest in a tree on a stormy night, curled up on the warm belly feathers of the mother bird. Like a nestling curled up under the warm belly feathers of a mother bird on a stormy night in a tree.

　　Suddenly, Rex's heart softened. He would let Emmet have everything he had ever wanted, everything he had ever wished for, but had never been granted, and now he would fulfill all of Emmet's wishes. Only if Emmet had everything he once didn't have could he soothe his soul.

　　Being leaned against by Emmet was like having a warm baby snuggled up next to him, dispelling the chill that hovered in the back of his mind. Just feeling Emmet's presence already made Rex feel like he had been rescued from the place he had once been trapped in.

　　At some point, Rex fell asleep without realizing it, surrounded by this warmth.

*3 Sage's Farewell

　　It was Emmet who was the first to awaken early the next morning.

　　"Wow." he had been mildly surprised, or rather startled, upon realizing that he and Rex were sleeping leaning against each other, causing him to scurry to the side, which caused the blankets on them to slide down.

　　It was then that Emmet noticed that the blanket he had been draped in last night had slipped to the floor, and that it was Rex's blanket that had been warming him last night.

　　That Rex would share a blanket with him and fall asleep leaning against him? Leaving no time for Emmet to be surprised, Rex quickly woke up with a yawn, "Heh ah …… you woke up so early to see the sunrise?"

　　"Sunrise?" The sky was just fish-belly white when Emmet woke up, but in a matter of moments, it was already bright. "There's no such thing as a sunrise here."

　　"No sunrise?" Though a little puzzled, Rex didn't pursue the question. "Whatever - is there anything you want to eat in the morning?"

　　Emmet, who had been worrying about his friends since he woke up and started thinking about ways to get out again, didn't really have an appetite or mood. Still, Rex strong-armed him with a cup of coffee with sugar and milk, fried eggs, and a sizzling muffin toasted to perfection, while he sat back calmly with his black coffee. "I'm still watching you, so don't think about running."

　　"But for Lucy's sake, and everyone's …… I can't stick to my agreement with Rex." Being a good and honest boy, seeing that there was really no possibility of getting Rex to release himself, Emmet finally made a difficult decision. He secretly thought that he had to find a chance to just escape and rescue his companion who was trapped in the organizer. But it turned out that no matter what Emmet came up with, Rex was able to anticipate his prediction, and even when Emmet ran out he was able to be captured and returned with a group of raptor crew members. "I told you, I won't let you get away."

　　Soon the next day the sun set, Emmet is still sitting in the same position as yesterday's sunset, looking away from the sunset, looking melancholy, Rex was a little annoyed by Emmet's cleverness, but still conscientiously as a good "nanny". Days like this continued day after day. In the next period of time, the battle of wits between Emmet and Rex has been continuing, each time to Emmet by Rex to catch and return to the case and end, every day, Emmet will sit at the bottom of the drying galaxy and the junction of the vast universe, and Rex and look at the red bright like blood sunset. Until the end, exhausted all the escape methods Emmet completely gave up struggling, can only sit in the same place all day long staring blankly at the organizer, as well as the direction of the former Fortress of Doom.

　　At first, Rex thought that Emmet did not run away, he can greatly save his mind, and for this reason, he also breathed a sigh of relief - he was also almost out of tricks by Emmet, if not for the hands of a team of velociraptor crew members and the power of science and technology, he really can't suppress Emmet, but he did not last long, after a day, Rex felt that Emmet was not a good person. After only one day, Rex felt that Emmet might as well be a bit more boisterous ……

　　Because now Emmet is too silent, so silent that Rex panic. Emmet as if already know the result, waiting for the final judgment to come, sitting in the old place, looking into the distance. As the sun sets again and again, the light of hope that was once bright in his eyes dims; he no longer confronts Rex, but also reduces his communication with him.

　　This very abnormal Emmet makes Rex feel uneasy. He was worried that Emmet was sick, and secretly used the machine scanning method to test Emmet's physical condition, but the machine gave the feedback that Emmet was healthy and everything was normal. Later, Rex guessed that Emmet was thinking about those "friends", so he sat down next to Emmet, accompanied by Emmet to talk about jokes, the movies he had seen, what he had seen and heard in the time-traveling …… He tried his best to replace those friends in Emmet's mind. He tried his best to replace the friends in Emmet's heart, but the result was very little.Emmet's look has always been with a sadness that once would never appear on his face, but correspondingly, it seems that he is also rapidly becoming more mature.

　　If it were Rex in the past, he would have been very impressed by this change in Emmet. But as the time accompanying Emmet grows longer and longer, Rex does not feel much relief for Emmet such changes, but instead feels a …… very subtle sadness. Is it infected by Emmet's mood?Rex felt that because it was Emmet's mood was too low, so it made him himself not happy; after all, they are the same person, maybe there will be such a situation is also normal, so he did not think deeper.

　　However, as the number of sunsets they had seen increased, Rex's thoughts changed a little, Emmet's figure looked too lonely as he sat in the afterglow of the sun's bloodstained rays, even if Rex would accompany Emmet every time he looked at the setting sun, even if Rex could break the silence and talk incessantly about any topic, the forlorn aura of Emmet's body wouldn't dissipate and as the number of sunsets they had seen increased, Emmet's mood wouldn't change, and as the number of sunsets they had seen increased, he didn't think about it too deeply, so he didn't. number of sunsets they'd watched, it became thicker and thicker.

　　Looking at Emmet like that, Rex convinced himself that this was the growing pains that had to be experienced on the road to maturity, and that when he passed through this stage, Emmet would no longer have to be afraid to endure the loneliness and the anger of betrayal in order to become strong enough, as Rex himself had. Yet there was a voice in the back of his mind that kept questioning: really? Are you sure?

　　But that voice is so small that Rex, though a small doubt exists, quickly puts it behind him. He absolutely believed in the path he chose, only in this way could he prevent the tragedy that happened to him from being repeated on Emmet, he was the future Emmet, and only he could give Emmet everything he wanted, he could make Emmet happy.

　　Day by day, Emmet still insisted on waiting in that place, but Rex felt that his patience was running out. More than once he had wanted to ask Emmet if he had waited long enough, but he had held back each time and just sulked and stayed by Emmet's side. He had sensed the source of his own unease behind this anger - though he insisted that there was absolutely no way Lucy and the others would come to Emmet's rescue, but what if? What if they did come, as he had once expected when he was trapped as Emmet? By the end of the day, Rex couldn't tell if he wanted to see "Lucy and the others won't come" or "they will come". Emmet has shown his obsession with waiting for the end, and Rex has been tortured repeatedly in the process, making him anticipate the final result and at the same time feel intense anxiety.

　　And the moment when the final outcome is revealed finally arrives sometime during sunset.

　　As Rex suspects, Armamageddon will be over when the real-life siblings make up - or are able to superficially get along and stop fighting over toys. The Lego ban was lifted and the two siblings got their beloved toys back out again.Lucy and the gang were released.

　　At that moment Rex felt his body freeze. Anxious for a result, the present Rex, and the Emmet within him, who had been trapped for so long at the bottom of the Drying Galaxy, seemed to merge at that moment, and together with the Emmet who had been "kidnapped" by Rex in the present timeline, looked expectantly toward the Castle of Doom, which seemed to be so far away that it had merged with the waning rays of the setting sun! --Or rather, it used to be the city, Fort Doom, but now it's not sure what it is, but it's the place where Lucy and all the other people that Emmet loves are located.

　　But no matter how much Emmet waited, no matter how much he tried to run to the place, no matter how much he tried to call for help (Rex hesitated, but in the end didn't stop Emmet from sending the signal), the place didn't respond, and Lucy and the others really weren't looking for Emmet.

　　Rex thought to himself, "That's it!". In the bottom of his heart, the Emmet who had been waiting for a long time under the Drying Galaxy was also looking forward to a different result this time. Unlike in the past, when he set out on his journey through the universe alone, this time Lucy and the others knew that Emmet had been taken by Rex. Lucy, the "friends", and the superheroes will not do anything?

　　The answer was now clear.Rex sighed and turned to Emmet just about to say something when he saw a tearful Emmet.

　　"Ah …… hey, don't cry ah …… "At this time Rex can't have much heart to mention anything about winning or losing a bet, he hurriedly picked up a towel and wiped Emmet's face off the Tears. "I told you, none of them deserve your trust, they don't deserve your love!"

　　The words did little to comfort. Rex was a little overwhelmed at the prospect of facing Emmet, who was crying out in pain, and finally he threw away the towel and wrapped Emmet in a hug, "It's okay, I'm here."

　　"I am you. I will never betray, never leave you, never forsake you. I will always be there for you." Rex stroked Emmet's hair, letting the particles of blue tears that continued to erupt from beside Emmet's cheeks pile up around them and roll down towards the side.

　　Everything on that day seemed to have melted into the cinnabar-colored slanting sun, and what remained in Rex and Emmet's memories at last was that from the lofty sky to the distant earth, all of them were dyed by the setting sun into a brilliant, bright red color with a slight hint of dark violet, as if their pasts had been melted by the red flames of the setting sun, and a blood-colored bond had been recast between the two of them. The whole world that was dyed with the color of Xi seemed to be the world itself's last and grandest farewell to Emmet.

　　After that Rex took Emmet by the hand and led him step by step to the Rexcelsior and threw Emmet a big welcome party with the raptor crew, Rex took Emmet by the shoulders and with his other hand raised an energy drink and made a loud toast, he told Emmet that they were going to set sail into the infinite universe of space and time, into a whole new world of futures and adventures, and that they would be the most loyal of friends. They would be the most loyal of friends, the best of brothers, family forever. emmet smiled a little forcedly, but never mentioned Lucy or his former friends again.

　　When the ship was about to jump out of the two different galaxies of the universe, the place that used to make up their whole world, and in reality was a small "home" for their parents and two children, Rex subconsciously looked at Emmet.

　　He saw the melancholy in Emmet's eyes that could not be dissolved, as well as the pain that he tried to hide. It was as if the grand sunset had been forever engraved in the bottom of Emmet's eyes, and as they went into the distance, the warm colors belonging to the sunset gradually dispersed, leaving behind only bleakness and sadness.

　　Seeing this scene, somewhere inside Rex also became empty.

　　What he did, was it really right? That voice resounded softly in the bottom of his heart again, as if an echo suddenly came from the infinite universe.

　　At this moment, Rex really couldn't answer himself.

TBC.

[r0-boat]

So like, Imagine.

Emmet is ranting to the substitute hero.

"Honestly, Months of scheming all for some Nobody to waltz through the door."

"Wow harsh."

"Ah well, even with your sub optimal brain activity you'll make a verrry good meal for my Joltiks."

"Wa-wait a minute I didn't Ask to cock block you. Ya know! I've got my own nemesis who's probably really confused why (Reader Hero Name) is crashing our work date instead of me...crashing my own work date. You get the idea!"

"I am Emmet and I am confused. You did not Choose this assignment?"

"Nope, I'm supposed to be down town watching a terribly adapted book flick. I mean, stopping my nemesis from destroying a movie theater...playing the terribly adapted book flick. We'd throw some one liners, throw some debris, Accidentally destroy those awful movie files in the process. Then sit in the wreckage and eat some popcorn together."

"But instead I'm Here being insulted by, you, because one of our company supervisor's doesn't believe Hero Nemesis relationships should be encouraged. So neither of us is having a good day."

"I see...and what is the Name of this supervisor?"

"..."

A few minutes later after the Substitute hero is untied.

"Okay so this is the Supervisor's name and image on the company website. Asshole doesn't even set Foot in the office half the time. Just constantly telling us 'lowly workers' where to go otherwise we get our asses chewed. Last week he said if he catches us taking 'too long with our villian interactions' we could suffer a pay dock. Can you believe that shit?"

"How awful." Ingo agrees as he buzzes around readying their transport.

"Verrry unprofessional. But please continue." Emmet prompts taking notes.

"Oh that's the Tip of the iceberg, there's also a gag order on heroes communicating with their nemesis on the clock otherwise it's Major disciplinary action. Like how does that make sense!? How are heroes supposed to go Meet their villains in battle if we can't communicate!? Also his car looks like this...and..."

Meanwhile at the Movie Theater. The Hero Reader is consoling the Substitute Hero's Villan.

"Like, we planned this date for Months. I know Pookie said work was really cracking down, but I never expected they'd pull This!" CRASH! "IT'S SO NOT FAAAAAAAIR!"

You patted the now monstrous form of the villain on the shoulder as they sobbed. Slow day at the movie theater meant minimum evacuations and without your own villains your heart really wasn't in it for battle.

"There there, I know the feeling you're going through. My day as a hero just isn't complete until I've heard my villains' monolog at least once."

"WELL WAIT NO LONGER MY DARRRLING!"

The hero reader swivels to see the twins and the substitute hero standing in the entrance to the movie theater with snacks from the concession stand.

"Boys!?"

"POOKIE!!!"

"Hi babe! OOF!" You were too stunned to laugh as your coworker was engulfed in a twirling hug by their nemesis. "I'm So sorry babe. I wanted to tell you what happened but-"

"Shh," The other villian assured, now back in their more humanoid appearance. "I know you didn't mean to hurt my feelings Pookie, I'm just happy you found a way to be here."

"Well, I can't take full credit for that idea." You coworker gestured to your own villains. "Now, let's go tear that movie to shreds!"

"YEEEES!"

The two ran further into the complex with a STOMP STOMP STOMP STOMP to find the flick that had apparently offended them so.

You were still a little bewildered but smiled after them. Two peas in a pod it seemed.

"What's on your mind, dearest?" Emmet cooed, draping his arms over your shoulders and pressing his lips to your temple.

You leaned into the warmth. "That was a sweet thing you two did." You commented. "Giving up your own plan so those two could have their date I mean."

"Technically it was a mutual exchange." Ingo supplied coming to your side and taking your hand so he could bring it to his lips for a kiss.

"Indeed, coming here led us to you. We would not have done so otherwise." Emmet assured, with almost complete confidence.

"True, but you could've goaded my coworkers villian into coming to You. But instead you did the opposite." You felt Emmet tense. "Gotcha, you big softie."

"I am Emmet and I am Not Soft."

"Okay but you are though."

"I am Not!"

"Are."

"NOT!"

"Are~"

"No-Mmph! Mmm...mmm..." His protest was cut off by him melting into your affection.

You smiled against Emmet's lips as you broke the kiss. Then you whispered "are~"

Emmet blushed and grumbled, but didn't release you from the hold he had on your back. Ingo even let out a small chuckle before taking his turn for some of your affection.

"Mmm," Ingo's lips parted from yours only briefly before he went back for more. You'd all missed this.

"But don't worry. That's why I adore you both so much. My nemeses." You cooed happily. "Now Ingo could you step back a moment dear?"

"Hm? Of course." He did so. "But may I ask wh-?"

You wrapped your arms around one of Emmet's and fuckin TOSSED his ass, (but landed him gently) over your shoulder onto the movie theater carpet.

He was stunned for a moment, before a huge grin broke across his face even as he lay flat out on the floor. "You are going to regret that Hero!"

You felt warmth pool in your cheeks and body. "We'll just have to see about that. Villians!" You hopped back, feeling your power course through your veins as your twins readied their offense.

"En garde Boys!

And so on that day a new loophole was discovered regarding heroes and nemesi double dates, the public loves a good collaboration after all.

Well, there was One person who wasn't thrilled about the outcome. But as one person might say "They had barely enough brain activity to satisfy a Joltik, so who cares what they think?"

Can you imagine a giant monster of a villain just sitting in a tiny seat being consulted by the hero and the just hand them a small tissue. The huge monster thanks them politely and takes the tiny tissue with their sharp claws.

Also thank you so much for this Beaker! this describes exactly the kind of tone this Au would have.

Also also, I would like to imagine the Board is confused and very concerned when all of their Heroes just started banging their villains, and they don't know what to do. Obviously, they couldn't fire all their workers, so they basically just said no work PDA...lol.

Emmet had "no talk, me angry" energy and I love it.

[smallestapplin]

Headcanons for the twins and Piers with an SO who suffers from a massive resting bitch face? I feel like those guys would understand my pain, yes even Emmet in a way,because don't tell me there aren't days where he is exhausted and just wants to go home but a coworker comes up to him and starts talking his ear of because he looks like he is just always ready for a chat.

You got the right bitch! Oh the amount of times I’ve been stopped in the past because ‘you look mad, everything okay?’ Like yeah sorry this is my resting face please leave me alone.

Asks are open!

-

-

🔲Ingo🔲

- Oh by golly oh gosh does he understand.

- Everyone always thinks he is so scary and intimidating cause he doesn’t express himself visually.

- Kids fear him.

- Parents fear him.

- Adults of any kind fear him.

- He is a decently tall man with the worlds most resting bitch face.

- But with the aura of love.

- It’s very confusing for people.

- So he gets it.

- He isn’t put off by it cause he is this same.

- Especially if you space out and your frown deepens cause of it.

- He honestly thinks it’s cute, and understands that people commenting on it is annoying and draining.

🔳Emmet🔳

- while mainly has the exact opposite problem. (Even tho his vibes scream he’ll stab a man with a smile on his face.)

- He gets it.

- His face screams ‘chat with me! I’m friendly!’ While he has a tag that says ‘caution : bites’

- Only you get to see his resting bitch face.

- After a long day of work and employees favoring talking to him when he is so tired.

- It’s at times like these you are reminded he and Ingo are identical.

- Cause he walks in the door, hangs his hat and coat up, walks into the living room where you are.

- And you swore Ingo walked in.

- You didn’t say that of course, after Emmet flops on you to cuddle his stress away.

- Warning! He does actually bite, so if someone makes a comment about you not smiling enough he will make sure to bite a chunk outta them with the brightest smile on his face.

🎸Piers🎸

- Raihan has deemed you two the ‘bitch face couple’ with all the affection in the world.

- Piers, your angry looking punk boyfriend who, given the chance, will bash a bottle over someone’s head.

- To you though he is the sweet man.

- To him, you’re a angry looking customer service worker than finally snapped and he’s into it.

- Does not appreciate any comments made about your resting face.

- “Next time ya think about speakin just die.”

- “PIERS!”

- “What? Jackass should mind their own business.”

- “you can’t just say that to people!”

- MAN DOES NOT GIVE A FUCK.

- You think he cares what people think?

- No.

- What does he care about? You and his sister.

- And ain’t nobody saying shit about either!

[autumn-sweet-fae]

Oof Imagine Drayden getting news that one of his nephews, the boy he raised, disappears and stays gone for years. Then the first year into the disappearance he gets a call that his other remaining nephew nearly committed suic*de. (He didn't actually but Drayden doesn't know he just passed out from exhaustion until after he gets the call from the hospital and drops everything to see Emmet.) If Arceus can't interfere by itself it at least needs to pay for the family therapy plan somehow.

Oh no… I know this ask is more serious, what with Drayden worrying for his poor boys, but now all I can think about is Arceus sending in Mesprit to be their divinely provided therapist. And Akari being oddly supportive of this idea since the lake guardian apparently helped her during her banishment from the Galaxy Team 🤣

But the serious answer:

For this au Drayden took the boys in when they were about 9 years old. Their mom, Draydens sister, had passed away the year before, and their father had walked out on them after deciding parenting the twins alone was too much for him after loosing his wife. Drayden was furious at their father for being so selfish, as if the boys hadn’t lost their mother and himself his sister.

Draydens youngest kid, Iris’s parent, had just moved out around this time, so the dragon master had plenty of space for the twins. He was honestly relieved to have them, the house felt too empty for him to live alone in. He did his best to welcome them in, doing extensive research before hand so he could be supportive for their needs.

While the boys were shy at first, Emmet only speaking to Ingo when he spoke at all, their shared love of pokemon and battles soon bridge the gap between them. From there their bond only grew.

He was so proud of Emmet the day he came home with a young Tynamo he had befriended. He had then been supportive of Ingo when he came home with a Litwick he and Emmet had found when they had visited their mothers grave. The ghost pokemon was friendly and didn’t hold any ill intent for the children, so she was welcomed to the family.

There were many proud fatherly moments for Drayden in the years to come. From the days of their Pokémon journey, to the days they had been first hired at the subways station. The later had been their first steps at achieving their dreams to combine their two greatest passions, trains and pokemon battling.

So, years later, when Drayden got the call that Ingo had gone missing, it was every parents nightmare. He assured himself and others that Ingo was a grown capable adult and a master trainer, so it was only a mater of time for his safe return. But then his pokemon had been found alone, and as the weeks turned to months there was still no sign of Ingo.

Drayden and most all the other gym leaders pitched in to help with the search for Ingo. When speculation started to grow that Emmet, of all people, could have had something to do with Ingo’s disappearance, Dryden was one of the first to defend him. 

Drayden then suffered another Parents Worst Nightmare when he got the call about Emmet hospitalization after a suspected life ending attempt. Like you said, Drayden dropped everything to go to him. Even when he learned the truth of the mater he insisted on continuing to be there for his nephew. The scare was too much and he was not going to let Emmet spiral any further.

Emmet does start going to therapist after this, which is a huge relief to many who care about him. Drayden and Iris make sure to reach out to him and visit/invite him over more regularly.

Emmet has a good network of support, so even at the worst of the backlash he suffers from the murder theorist, he does have someone ready to be there for him.

[m1sosazai]

ok so i've read the fics where ingo recognizes emmet right away, or very soon after meeting, or when he sees emmet he gets flashbacks and tries to run away or something bc he thinks his brother is actually some illusioned-up zoroark or something. also those fics where they meet in their dreams, or in the rifts. which are all very good!

but specifically that one fic where ingo sees like, little hallucinations of emmet out of the corner of his eye after he gets some of his memory back stuck w me. and basically i think...

what if when the twins meet again, maybe w the PLA protag or the clan leaders... emmet sees ingo give a quick glimpse at him, then pointedly ignore him.

he can't figure out why (is his brother mad at him for not finding him sooner? has he been so traumatized by the separation that he can't look directly at him, the way emmet had a hard time w mirrors during ingo's disappearance?), but meanwhile, ingo is frantically running down his mental checklist of tasks.

1. did he get enough sleep? (yes, a full eight hours before he was roped into this meeting, plus w the baby sneasels and lady sneasel.)

2. did he have enough to eat? (yes, he had a meal at the wallflower a few hours ago... with some cake lures and berries as emergency provisions if he does get hungry.)

3. is he injured anywhere? (no, the last wounds he got, some abrasions from the debris that flew up while he was fighting akari a few weeks ago, healed up just fine.)

having checked off all the criteria, ingo slowly looked up, and despite his better judgement, very carefully met gazes with the white-clothed man with his face that was still, inexplicably, there.

"warden ingo, are you alright?" professor laventon's assistant asked him quietly.

"yes, my engine is in perfect condition," ingo lied, deliberately turning away from the obvious hallucination. maybe it would vanish when he stopped making direct eye contact with it, like it always had before - he couldn't entertain the possibility of his mental state potentially getting worse and having the white-clothed man appear outside the dire situations he'd always seen him it in.

(he didn't need more people in the pearl clan whispering about his uncanny habit of talking to the air, or akari eyeing him with concern whenever he was caught spacing out while turning to the left after she'd felled one of his pokemon in battle.)

so yeah, ingo is very used to seeing emmet whenever he gets into trouble somehow... so much so that he has a hard time remembering that he CAN talk to his twin now, in the flesh, without people looking at him crazy lol.

of course, emmet isn't going to stand for his brother ignoring him forever, no matter what he might've done or what ingo thinks, so he ends up goading him into talking to him right in the middle of the meeting (about past-future information exchange or something prolly, idk), and ingo ends up yelling at him like "not now, sleep hallucination! we're in the middle of something!" (bc most of the time he's suffering from insomnia when he sees hallucination-emmet, and "injury hallucination" is significantly more worrying to most - and also rolls off the tongue less imo - to say), which attracts everyone's attention. and the twins have an argument-sation about whether emmet is hallusionary (thank you esama for that great combination of hallucination + illusion), whether it was polite to yell at your brother (remembered or not, real or not) after not seeing him for a while, and how much sleep ingo usually got in a night.

after a while of this, rei is like "...who are you talking to, warden?" (bc honestly akari gets all the spotlight and i like to include cute nerdy assistant boy more), and ingo points at him like "SEE, he just asked who i was talking to, THAT MEANS you're as fake as always!" and emmet scoffs (still smiling in relief tho) before rei is like "actually, i meant 'who is that man who looks like you, warden?'"

ingo realizes that people can see his hallucination, somehow, and spends a brief moment horrified that some zoroark has brought his friendly illusion to life to torment him, or perhaps he's dreaming right now - before it hits him.

the illusion is... real. that's a real man standing before him, feeling very familiar, who looks just like him.

and ingo just derailed a meeting to debate with him and reveal his possibly decaying mental state.

...ingo is very embarrassed.

[manchasama]

So, with the memory reset Emmet, how *do* they end up finding Ingo? If they even do at all? I'm just imagining them walking around aimlessly until they somehow find a portal or something hahaha. Maybe a legendary/mythical pokemon has something to do with it?

Oh cool this ask came in at a good time, lol! Also do feel free to stop by @dark-green-line's tumblr, as they are expanding on this idea for themselves as well!

So some further thoughts about this post of mine, inspired by the additional posts by dark-green-line, I think I figured out what Emmet's deal is. Well, so much as unexplainable twin powers are explained of course :p

Emmet knows something is missing, that he needs to go find something. He has no idea what, and honestly having no memories or familiarity at all is terrifying. Plus he's kept in that environment for a while (for good intentions, but you know). By the time he's allowed to leave Nimbasa, he's feeling much more relieved, but also feels like it's much more urgent for him to get where he needs to be. He knows he was delayed, even if he can't really pick apart singular memories.

Being joined by Ella reassured him, somehow. He tries not to think to hard about it, since that inevitably leads to headaches (and bouts of memory loss, but he doesn't quite realize this), so he just goes with the flow. He enjoys her company, and it's nice not being completely alone. For some reason being alone is terrifying. (He hadn't even considered how alone he'd be on such a journey, so it's an extra boon that Elesa went with).

His ability to retain memories improves the further away from Nimbasa they move, and when they leave Unova entirely he no longer suffers from bouts of loss. There is a constant pull in his chest, that he needs to keep moving in this direction, that what he needs is at the end of the journey. So he and Ella travel, collecting pokemon along the way (because even if he doesn't remember his own team, he does still find joy in training pokemon. Also without Ingo there as his impulse control, without needing to cater to the fair rules of the subway, he probably goes off the rails of normal training as well.)

By the time they reach Sinnoh, they've left behind a bit of a reputation in the places they traveled, as a scarily strong, unorthodox battlers. Ella is no slouch, having trained along side him and is able to match him well. And as soon as Emmet sets foot on Sinnoh, he knows he's close.

However it turns out not to be that easy. He marches on with confident steps, until he's standing where he definitely knows he needs to be. But there's nothing special here. Just some mountain cave, that had been quite a climb to get to. Confused but determined, he and Ella spend a while scouring the area for clues. Other than some very old scuff marks in the cave that indicated it used to be a den of sorts, long long ago, there's nothing. Then as the day wanes, Emmet gets the urge to move again, to make his way down the mountain into the nearby city.

Jubilife city is busy and bustling, and Emmet is frustrated that there's so many things in his way. He doesn't know why, but all these buildings feel wrong to him. He does his best, following the inexorable pull in his heart. Eventually he and Ella are outside the trainers school. Emmet stops here for a while, they probably go inside to explore the area, but again, there's nothing special here, nothing worth noting except for the certainty that Emmet should be here.

Elesa's worry has been growing ever since Emmet started talking about how close they were, only for nothing to come of it, for there to be no sign of Ingo. She'd even made her own discrete inquires, to see if anyone had seen Ingo around. Nothing. Had this all been a wild goose chase? Had Emmet just lost his mind in grief? Was it fair of her to play along with his delusions? Except she couldn't bring herself to honestly believe that Emmet's feelings were nothing. The whole situation was too strange. She'd rather trust in this impossible feeling of Emmet's than the alternative.

Emmet stayed by the training school for a long while, nearly vibrating with his desire to battle someone strong. (I'm not sure what the training school actually is or if he gets the chance to really battle, but if he does it's quite the spectacle. Disruptive tho.) Eventually the pull leads him away, off a frustratingly winding path to another unrelated part of the neighboring area. Not sure if it's still part of Jubilife city or a neighboring town, but it doesn't matter much.

This goes on for days. Some days, Emmet and Ella spend all their time in the mountains, camping and wandering around. They visit that abandoned den many times, always at a set time of day, but often more times as well. When they do return to town, most times they are by the trainer school, and rarely do they travel to that secondary location. Emmet's frustration is growing, because he knows something is wrong with this, that there's some answer just outside of his understanding.

Elesa though has been observing, and speculating. She can see the pattern forming. It's like Emmet is following a routine, following the daily life of someone else. And she knows what the legendaries of the area are known for. A suspicion is forming in her mind.

(Emmet is following along as Ingo moves about Hisui. Time is flowing for both of them, despite them being in different eras. Emmet is right next to Ingo, only separated by a few hundred years.)

I think with a little digging, Elesa can uncover some proof of Ingo's existence in the past. And with some further digging, she can come up with a plan to try and get them to travel there. She's ride or die at this point. Legendaries are definitely involved, but I don't have any new ideas in particular for this. Dialga is a reasonable method to get back. Questions for exactly how it shakes down would include 1. Is the Sinnoh champion the same as the MC for PLA? 2. Did the champion capture Dialga? 3. If not, how would Elesa go about getting its cooperation?

I think I'm leaning toward the champion and MC are the same, Dialga is not captured/easily accessible, and Elesa goes off on her own to find it and convince it to help and/or capture it herself. Because we need to give her the limelight for a bit :>

Once she's captured Dialga and its promise to help, she then has to convince Emmet. It's not hard, at this point they are very close and he trusts her. He knows she's keeping something from him, but he remembers his lack of memory, and assumes rightly it has to do with that. If she says she knows how to get to where he needs, that it's in another time, he will follow her lead.

The reunion is the oddest thing. Once Elesa and Emmet arrive, Emmet is flooded with certainty and urgency that he needs to get moving right now. He takes off at a run, traversing the familiar unfamiliar terrain (he'd spent a lot of time walking it in the future, and while it looks different, it's still largely the same area). He can see lights down the mountain, and heads for them without pause. If any pokemon try to get in his way, he barely notices as he ducks away from them. (Elesa occasionally has to send out a pokemon to dissuade some particularly aggressive pokemon. She is worried about this, but more worried about losing Emmet. For now, she gives in to the recklessness and follows.)

Emmet doesn't pause as the gate to the village comes into view. He pushes past the confused-looking guard, not hearing his baffled inquiries. (Elesa does. She hears the guard call Emmet "Warden Ingo", and her heart soars. They are so close. She doesn't let the guard stop her either. Letting out one of her pokemon is enough to startle him into inaction long enough for her to get by, not breaking stride.)

Ingo has been in the training grounds, as he normal does these days. However for the past couple of hours, he's had the horrible urge to leave, to head up into the mountains. Like he was urgently missing something important. The only things that kept him to his station was first calling and reassuring himself that Lady Sneasler was in no distress, and second the fact that the MC and others were keeping him busy today with battles. He tried to ignore the feeling, but he was distracted in his battles. MC definitely noticed, and questions him on it. He has no answers to give.

Until a commotion at the other end of the village catches their attention. There's movement, a figure in white dashing down the main street toward the training ground. A tug at Ingo's sleeve makes him stop, having not realized he'd started forward. He looks down at MC, confused at his own action, eyes a little wild at the rising urgency in his chest to break away and start running toward the stranger.

Emmet is here. He's here, he's where he needs to be. Ella had been right. He's here, he's here. Emmet is almost blind in his reckless charge, not letting anything get in his way. He is up the slight incline with long strides, crossing the flat expanse of dirt that showed signs and scuffs of battles, right up to the figure in black who is the only thing he can perceive. He doesn't stop, not until he turns on his heel, settling to the right of the figure in black. Finally, finally he feels like he can breathe again. He does so, taking a deep breath, before snapping his arms out. At his side, he knows the other person has done the same.

"I am Emmet! Do you remember me? I was lost for a long time. But I did not give up. Now I am together again with Ingo. Yup! Our combination is best!"

Ingo is silent for a moment, stunned at his own actions, stunned because Emmet, he knows that name, his brother is here, he remembers. He drops his arms, turning to really take in his twin for the first time, stepping forward and enveloping him a tight hug. Emmet's arms surround him, just as tight.

"Bravo, Emmet." His voice is thick with tears, but he doesn't care. "Excellent. We make a good two-car train." The words come easy, wrote, but he means every one of them.

There is confusion from the Jubilife natives, but no one is quite brave enough to step in to the obviously charged moment. Until Emmet abruptly thrusts Ingo away from him, shrieking, "ELESA!"

And he turns to her, where she's standing not far away, tears in her eyes. Because Emmet has realized his friend has been by his side the whole time as well. That she gave up so much, and needs to get over there right this minute because he can't let go of Ingo but he needs to express his gratitude to her as well. She falls into their arms readily, so glad her little family is back together. Questions and explanations can come later.

The Nimbasa trio is together again.

[egginfroggin]

For the question game~! Emmet, 21 and 23

(With regards to this ask game)

21. If you're a fic writer and have written for this character, what's your favorite thing to do when you're writing for this character? What's something you don't like?

Favorite thing to do? Make him suffer >:]

Something I don't like? I'm honestly not sure, as I usually don't write things I don't enjoy writing, but probably how hard it can be to get his voice right at times. It can be very difficult at times, especially because I tend to wax prosaic in everything and Emmet is the most to-the-point bean I think I've ever written for.

23. Favorite picture of this character?

That is a very good question, I have no idea! There's a lot to choose from.

Favorite art by other people is possibly:

this one (reblogged like 3 times now)

this one (which is just. the cutest thing)

this one (which someone drew for me and I love it and internally kick my feet doing a little squeal every time I remember that)

one other that I don't have on hand because I haven't reblogged it yet, but I love the vibes and linework of it (may also be Ingo? It's vague)

Favorite picture that I've done for him (so far, at least) is probably

this one (warning for blood)

Thank you for the ask! These were fun to think about and answer. I hope you have a good day! ^^

[arti-armory]

Gosh, it’s seriously been three years since I last publicly posted my artwork. Goodness me. Well, I’m certainly going to be getting better about it... hopefully. I think what I’ll do is post batches of artwork here while in-progress stuff with be frequently added to my twitter. 

  Anyways, I’ve been getting into Submas and Splatoon lately. Honestly not the best at shooters alone but maybe after some practice I’ll be. I just love the art style so much and the possibilities this creates. *Chiefs kiss*

TL;DR below if y’all are interested in learning more!~

This Submas x Splatoon is a fun side project to my main project involving Pokémon; Legends Arceus, PLA. And to clarify I'm not combining PLA with Splatoon. It’s not going to have inklings, octolings, and all that other good stuff with PLA. However interesting that might be.  The main project a massive 20-30 chapter story with my player character/OC, Rota! Which is why they are included here. 

Rota Species: Octoling Pronouns: She/They Unique traits/features: Blind in right eye (the white eye for clarification) Relations: Ingo (adoptive father), Emmet (adoptive uncle)

Rota is a very serious but considerate character. She suffers the same problems like Ingo with having a very unexpressive face that appears to be mostly neutral and/or disinterested. However as she grows more comfortable or at worse overwhelmed, those emotions actually come out. In the Splatoon universe she serves as the middle grounds between Ingo and Emmet, her opinion on matters will determine what the other two decide on. It’s a very serious job which fits her just right. Even though she has a tendency to favor Ingo’s side being her adopted father and all. Though she still has a lot to learn as a to-be conductor, don’t let it fool you of how skilled she it in battle. In fact, she can take on both Ingo and Emmet if need be and hold her own just fine. Sometimes when none of them can agree on anything, they usually battle it out. And that is a sight to behold.

I’ve actually have a mix-shift story in my head of how Splatoon Ingo, Emmet, and Rota all met up together but I’m already working on 5 different projects at once. Bare with me please. OTL Perhaps I’ll try making mini comic series or picture with mini chapter with it. I dunno. If people find this interesting, it’ll definitely encourage me to post more. If not then I’ll just enjoy this all to myself. ^v^ 

[spitdrunken]

I LOVE your blankshippingxReader pieces may I throw for your consideration : Reader got into a relationship with Ingo while he was still in Hisui/suffering from amnesia so when he remembers Emmet (and his previous relationship with him) it leads to some angst on all parts (and a verrrrry jealous Emmet) but then they give this poly thing a try (with a very awkward reader/emmet beginning) but then it just works?? happy ending

if you saw me accidentally post this before i even wrote anything. NO YOU DID NOT !!! anon i love this concept !!!!! esp the idea of emmet n you coming to slowly like each other is so FUN to me

notes: incest, cheating(? not purposefully. but also technically yes.), emmet strongly disliking you but coming around in the end.

You knew that, in coming to Hisui, Ingo had lost someone he cared about a lot. Their smile, their love of battling, their company- He missed all of it. He mentioned them sometimes, eyes downcast and gaze far away, his grip on your hand loosening as he lost himself in his memories. He loved them, that much was clear to you. There was one detail though, that led you to date Ingo without guilt: According to him, he only ever saw a face identical to his. If that was the case, they’d likely be family, right? Not a romantic partner, you assume.

...Ingo can’t fault your logic either, though he never fully rids himself of a lingering guilt. He ignores it. He cares about you a lot, loves you even, a kindred spirit lost in the fabric of time and space.

When you return to the present, it all falls apart. Ingo doesn’t recover his memories all at once, and this leaves Emmet too scared of ruining everything to confess the true nature of their relationship. Ingo has change and it has left  Emmet verrry nervous. What he says and what he does is always the same, but now there’s so many new factors to keep in mind. Ingo acts differently (more independent, further away from him), he has a different battling style (he always used to be able to predict his next move), and clearly has to reacclimate to the modern world (he panicked the first time at station, so many noises, so many people, so many loose pokemon- they had to leave early.)

Emmet could have handled all of this. He would take time off and go out with Ingo lots and lots, tell stories and show pictures of their shared experiences, battle him too many times to count, and slowly ease him back into the public. But there’s you. And you have ruined everything.

He is, quite simply, completely sick with jealousy. (the way ingo looks at you!!!!! the way you can be affectionate in public without a care in the world!!!! how he can’t do any of that right now!!!!!) At first, he avoids you like the plague and tries to pull away his brother from any moment with you, because the mere sight of you stresses him out beyond belief. He also cries in private. Quite a bit. But then he makes up his mind: This is only one more battle he has to win on the tracks of his life, and he’ll prove himself the best! He knows his brother better than anyone, better than you, and he’ll win back his affections for sure. 

He knows his determination to tear you two apart makes him a bad person. Ingo clearly cares about you, and you get along well. You clearly know your way around this ‘new’ Ingo better than he does, though he doesn’t want to admit it even to himself. And you’re not a bad person either- Honestly, he wishes you were, that’d make this a whole lot easier. All of this pisses him off more. Emmet knows he should be happy or something that Ingo found love and support in such a terrifying and vulnerable situation, that their relationship was taboo and strange and that he should leave it behind him once and for all, but he can’t! He loves him too much, and he knows Ingo cares about him more than anything else as well. He has to be selfish. None of this makes him evil.

Emmet becomes very aggressive and confrontational with you. In every interaction, he looks for traits of yours that mirror or resemble his, wanting to convince himself that you were a mere replacement of the ‘real thing’. It never works as well as he wants it to. Everything you do with or for Ingo will be one-upped by him. He’s so desperate for his brother’s attention that you would’ve pitied him if he weren’t so mean to you! Emmet never outright insults you (to your face), but that’s only because there’s a chance Ingo could find out. He’s absolutely making you battle him. If you lose, he’s going to be rubbing it in your face forever and ever. 

Ingo, meanwhile, has an intense feeling of deja vu witnessing parts of his brother’s jealousy, before memories of him and Emmet come rushing back to him. Memories of them cuddling, holding hands, kissing, making out, making love... To say he’s flustered would be an understatement. He can’t deny that he had some thoughts that would be considered odd about his brother since reuniting with him... He knows this is right somehow, not something he just made up. The realization is eating him alive. Emmet’s behaviour makes a lot more sense in this context, he’d been cheating on him and breaking his heart. But he still doesn’t agree with his behaviour towards you. You’re an innocent party in all of this, who didn’t even know he was already dating someone!

...Who doesn’t even know he’d been dating his twin brother. For years. How could he ever clean up this mess? What if he told you, and you’d be disgusted, and leave him? Either way, you’d feel terrible in one way or another. But Emmet is also killing himself with his jealousy and Ingo misses their intimacy too, even more now that he remembers it.

He realizes that, selfish creature that he is, he wants both of you. Ingo cannot bear his guilt over this whole situation for long, and ends up spilling it all to you. Surprisingly enough, you take the whole incest part rather well.

“So? Is this it?” You try to keep your face as calm as possible, but your voice wavers and betrays you. “A-are you going to be with him now? Is that what you’re trying to say?”

“No!” Ingo calls out too loudly, and then places his head in his hands, groaning. “I don’t... I don’t know. I... I love both of you very much. You are both incredibly important to me, I couldn’t... I don’t want to choose a track that separates me from either of you.”

“What if...” You swallow. “What if you don’t choose?”

Emmet isn’t fond of the thought of sharing Ingo, not at all. But if he has to choose between this or not having Ingo at all... He doesn’t hesitate. You put down quite a few regulations on paper, essentially splitting up your schedules so that you and Emmet spend the least amount of time around each other as possible. You have Ingo to yourself on different days and times. You’ll get your own separate room in their apartment, making their guest room into your own. There’s also a schedule for which bed he’ll be sleeping in. Any interaction with Emmet is awkward, and everything is set up so you can avoid each other.

Though he has to admit, now that he and Ingo are officially dating again, your presence has become much more bearable. Enjoyable, even. You make Ingo happy, that much is clear. So Emmet can’t completely hate you. You bring out a different side of his brother, and it’s both fascinating and a little discomforting to see. You’re aware of everything that happened in Hisui and, eventually, he sets aside his pride and asks you on how to better accommodate his brother’s changed needs. (Ingo can be stubborn with those things, just going along until he tires himself out. He talks more, but is worse at actually communicating.)  

Eventually though, you two find yourself spending some time together. Emmet tells you that “you have good taste in men” and somehow you find this so funny that it breaks the ice. Though your conversations start with Ingo as the subject, it slowly drifts away from that. To Emmet’s battling tactics, his work, his love of his Joltik and his breeding methods... And Emmet eventually realizes that, without his jealousy, he quite likes you. He and his brother have always held shared preferences in everything else, so it kinda makes sense that they’d be attracted to similar people, but... He always thought Ingo would only be the one for him! He needs some time to come to terms with that, though he’s not uncomfortable calling you a friend. He becomes noticeably more touchy and clingy with you, regretting the earlier regulations he himself earlier put down that had you avoiding each other. He’s about to be jealous of Ingo instead!!

You’ll likely have to ask him out on a date or bring up the concept of you two not dating just Ingo, but he’s not going to turn you down! 

[nemesis-is-my-middle-name]

My biggest struggle when it comes to matching songs with fics - because I sometimes like to make what are basically soundtrack playlists for fics I'm really into - is that so many of them have the right tone and almost the right relationship between the two people depicted, except for the line or two that turns it from something that could be platonic into something that is clearly Romantic. It's so frustrating, because it's so close to being perfect but it's now completely unusable if taken as a whole.

On that note... do you have any songs you associate with oop? Or ones that you have listened to to get you into the mood to write certain parts?

SO FUCKING REAL. why is everything a love song!! why is everything a BORING HETEROSEXUAL love song?? is it so much to ask for my platonic blorbos to have SOME food. honestly.

anyway hmm this is. a toughie. i don't really listen to music for writing bc it distracts my brain (not music with words anyway. i have a video game music playlist for getting in the zone for any kind of work/focus stuff) and also like we just said it's so hard to find songs that aren't romantic and also you know what songs there are like NONE of? people who met approx five minutes ago but have to trust each other and work together and get invested super quick anyway. which is like 80% of what oop's character dynamics are, tbh. also tough bc there's probably songs that ive listened to and thought "ooh that's so oop" but i don't have a playlist so i like. forgot immediately. so with that in mind here's some vague ideas:

Evelyn: like 30% ingo 30% emmet 30% volo 10% just vibes. up top bc it's also the song i mentioned in that original post. and if the mountain's gotta move, i'll find a way to circumvent it...

I'll Be Your Pilot: i live in fear that one day i'll have an Epiphany that this song is actually romantic bc right now it's so good for parent-child dynamics. anyway. ingo/emmet/cyllene @ rei and akari, also specifically: i won't leave you to suffer, i won't let them prevail, i know a trapdoor shortcut-gate into the wilds of the free air!

Ribs: clan leader theme. there aren't a ton of songs about being circumstantially pushed into a leadership role too young and struggling under the pressure so i've gotta make do with songs about Being A Teenager instead. o well. i would also like to say that that One Part is very ingo (i want 'em back, the minds we had, it's not enough to feel the lack i want 'em back i want 'em back i want 'em-!)

Machine: this is a good song for anyone who's like In Service To A God and it's bad. a mightier power who just lacks my perspective, and who lacks my organics, and who covets my defects...

[leggerefiore]

So we have a bunch of headcanons and fics and such for the Train Twins as being S/O's romantic partner, but I don't think anyone's asked how they would be as friends. So- what would Ingo and Emmet be like if you tried to befriend them?

hey now, they've been brothers to the reader lol

▲Subway Bosses As Friends▽

● The best way to become their friend is honestly to have been someone they grew up with or a regular challenger of their battle lines. Being a trainer gives you a decent bit to start a relationship, but you have to be someone they click with it. Ingo is extremely formal and polite with you at first, at least until he feels more comfortable with you. Emmet will talk wildly when you get him on a topic he's interested in (breeding, battling, trains), but tapers off into silence when he runs out of things to say. In Emmet's case, he's unsure of what is a good next topic for you both to speak about and afraid it won't be good enough. He's waiting for you to initiate it. Ingo talks about his interest with inquisitive asks. For a while, it is all quite stiff because he's unsure of whether he can deepen the conversation. Open the door for them both, and you'll find yourself with an attentive listener and a good conversationalist as friends.

○ Emmet loves to go out and do things with his friends, and you're no exception. You'll be taken everywhere in Nimbasa by him, often with Elesa tagging along. He's excited to show you his favourite places and hopes they'll become yours, too. A certain Battle café is a common location to hang out. You watch as he battled precisely two employees before the rest of the staff cut him off. He whines about it as you and Elesa get to fight around five employees. The younger twin huffs over his coffee and cake. So unfair. You're also dragged to the amusement park and taken on every single ride. Emmet goes on the roller coaster multiple times because he loves it. You're holding on for dear life while he cheers excitedly. He chuckles at your reaction afterwards. It is all in good fun, of course.

● Ingo prefers quieter hang-outs in more reserved settings. Something like you coming over to his house or him to yours while you do something around the house. Emmet may or may not tag along, depending on whether he wants to or not. You'll likely end up watching a show together, playing a board game, or just chilling and talking about your days and gossip from around Nimbasa. Your pokemon are out and being friendly towards one another. It's all so relaxing and pleasant. Pizza guy did about scream with the Subway Boss, Ingo opened the door with Chandelure behind him. You're just laughing until your stomach hurts. Board games are calm when it's just you and Ingo, but the minute Emmet gets involved, everything becomes high-stakes competitive. Scrabble shouldn't hold such powerful consequences.

○ Ingo is a good companion during times of stress and lower moods. He's very calm and understanding, offering wonderful and applicable advice for you. Despite being overworked and stressed himself, he hates seeing others suffering through his pain. If he can, you'll catch him doing nicer, subtler things for you. A friendly gift of food you like or keeping you company during your worst times. It might make him a bit uncomfortable as he isn't used to it, but he'll give you a hug and reassure that he will always be there for you.

● Emmet is good for when you're feeling lonely. He's always at your side and likely grabbing some part of you; it's impossible to ignore him. If you're feeling sad, he's giving you hugs and trying to take you out to things he knows you'll enjoy. If you want to stay in, he'll find some way to keep you entertained in your home. The younger twin keeps a bright grin on his face. You'll forget about whatever is bothering you in his presence.

○ Battling is super, super important to them. Ingo loves to help you become a stronger trainer and takes great pride in being a training partner for you. He recognises your talent and wants to see it grow into more, if you haven't tapped into it at all. Emmet loves a good challenge, and you provide it. He's genuinely excited whenever you come to visit his line. It makes a long day go by just a bit faster. With you, winning feels more accomplished, while a loss doesn't bother him as much. He's squeezing you into a playful hug either way.

● Ingo fusses over your health if you aren't taking proper care of yourself. Should you dare be dehydrated in his presence, he's handing you water with a stern glare and reminder that being dehydrated has many terrible effects on your body. You are given no option but to drink it. Ingo won't let you not take care of yourself.

○ Emmet, however, inspires bad behaviour. He wants you to help him prank people. You're unsure how many times you've served as a distraction for Ingo while Emmet sets up some elaborate scheme. The payoff is always funny, at least. One time he released his horde of Joltiks into his and Ingo's office while you had the older twin busy. The screams from Ingo could be heard all the way in Nuvema Town.

● Emmet will happily help you with breeding pokemon, too. Tips and tricks are given if you need any, and he's excited to see what kind of pokemon you hatch. He may ask for one if you're willingly to give him one. His work is one thing, but yours is something special. He loves admiring other's skills and technique when it comes to breeding. The younger twin may even part with a beloved Joltik as a gift for you.

○ Ingo often finds himself chatting with you about random events regarding trains. You listen attentively and debate, telling him that he could make a documentary YouTube video about whatever he's talking about. His voice is amazing at carrying emotion and emphasis while remains clear and understandable. You may doze off from how calming it is.

● Overall, they're very helpful friends, with Ingo being a bit of a “mom friend” with how he constantly checks up on you and offers advice and Emmet being a more playful friend, often wanting to spend time doing things with you that are fun and exciting. Both are actually quite protective, however. Even if you can handle yourself, they prefer not to leave a friend to fend for themselves. Especially, if you're famous like Elesa.